Vegan Wedding Food

Published by PETA Staff.


Give your guests an “I can’t believe it’s vegan!” moment by serving flavorful, elegant, cruelty-free food on your special day. Are you an experienced vegan chef who loves to cook? Many dishes are easy to make yourself if you’d prefer to wow your guests with some home cookin’.

If cooking isn’t your specialty, hire a caterer to do all the work so that you can just sit back and enjoy the food! If you have a favorite local vegan restaurant, check to see if it caters events. The following are a few directories that list vegan-friendly restaurants and caterers:

Most caterers are more than happy to customize a menu to address your needs, so feel free to contact those available in your area and see if they’re willing to come up with an animal-free menu.

Another unique and fun idea is to have a food truck! Vegan food trucks are popping up in a number of big cities and are experts at cooking up delicious food for large crowds. They’re a great option for rehearsal dinners, too.

Remember: This is your opportunity to show your guests how tasty vegan food is, so don’t settle. If the first recipe or caterer you try isn’t exactly what you had in mind, keep looking! The time and energy that you put into finding the perfect food for your reception will pay off in the end. The wife of one PETA staffer said that the effort she put into finding the perfect caterer was worth it. As she explained, “We actually had a number of nonvegan guests comment that the food opened their eyes to how good vegan cuisine can be.” You couldn’t ask for a better reaction!

Check out the following fabulous menu ideas from special events and nutritional food consultant Susan Baker:

Lunches

Looking for light fare that would be perfect for an early afternoon wedding reception? Then let’s do lunch with these easy, breezy menus:

Menu 1: For a meal that is guaranteed to be faux pas-free, toss together a Grilled Faux-Chicken Caesar Salad and add fresh fruit and rolls with Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade.

Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade

2-lb. jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil
2 cups pitted olives
1/2 cup capers
3 Tbsp. Basil Pesto (see recipe)
1 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup olive oil

In a food processor, combine the sun-dried tomatoes, olives, capers, pesto, and pine nuts.
Add the olive oil, 1 Tbsp. at a time, until a smooth consistency is achieved.
Place in a crock or on an oval platter. Serve with croûtes or crackers.

Makes 4 cups

Basil Pesto

3 garlic gloves, peeled
1/3 cup pine nuts
3 cups firmly packed fresh basil leaves
1/2-3/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup soy parmesan cheese

Place the garlic and the pine nuts in a food processor and process until minced. Add the basil, salt, and pepper and process until a paste forms.
With the machine running, pour the oil into the feed tube in a slow, steady stream until well blended. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the soy cheese.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes 2 cups

Menu 2: To create an afternoon delight, invite pesto to your nuptials! This menu packs a punch with flavorful Pasta Pesto, refreshing Lemon Fruit Cups, and oh-so-good Garlic Bread or warm baguettes dripping with vegan garlic margarine.

Informal Dinners

Perfect for a wedding rehearsal or a casual reception, the following menus are must-haves when the occasion calls for simple, great-tasting cuisine:

Menu 1: For a hearty dinner that has something to tempt everybody’s taste buds, you can’t go wrong with simple fare, including favorites such as “Sausage” Pizza, Mexican Layer Dip, tossed salad, Grilled Corn on the Cob, Grilled Red Skin Potatoes, Grilled Vegetable Kebabs, Grilled “Chicken” Patties With Mango Salsa, and Brownies or “Sundaes.”

Menu 2: Want to serve a dinner that’s colorful and creative? Then relax and chill with your guests over Grilled Tempeh With Dipping Sauce, Tropical Tossed Salad, Vegan Tetrazini, and Raspberry Phyllo Cups. Add some Sun-Dried Tomato Foccacia, and you’ll have a meal that’ll make your guests say, “Oh, my gosha!”

Formal Sit-Down Dinners

This pleasing-to-the-eye and pleasing-to-the-palate meal is perfect for any formal wedding. Give fine fare an elegant flair by offering Tossed Salad with a basket of Mushroom Phyllo and Broccoli Delmonico, a side of couscous, and a “painted plate” entrée with Stuffed Zucchini Boats, followed by Poached Pears or Queen of Sheba Cake.

Traditional Sit-Down Dinners

For a savory and satisfying sit-down dinner without the white gloves, these traditional menus are a perfect fit:

Menu 1: An elegant dinner of Caesar Salad, Cream of Asparagus Soup, “Beef” in Puff Pastry With Madeira Wine Sauce, Twice-Baked Potatoes, and Garlic Green Beans or Broccoli will have all your guests saying “I do” when asked if they want seconds.

Menu 2: Whether or not you’re hosting a “big fat Greek wedding,” make a meal with Mediterranean flair by dishing out Stuffed Grape Leaves, Roasted Eggplant Dip served with raw vegetables, Vegan Greek Salad, Vegan Moussaka, Vegan Lemon Chicken, Rice Pilaf, pita bread with Tahini Dipping Sauce and Vegan Tzatziki, and Spinach Pie.

Buffet Dinners

Let your guests help themselves to a buffet loaded with a garden variety of delicious vegetarian dishes, such as California Tossed Salad, Shepherd’s Pie, fresh baguettes with assorted flavors of hummus, Spanish Paella, and “Chicken” Casserole.

Cocktails & Hors d’Oeuvres

Grab a drink and mix and mingle as trays of hot and cold treats, such as Maple-Pecan Pâté on Apple Slices, Cucumber Sandwiches, Spinach Pie, Potato Samosas, Mini Open-Faced Vegan Reubens, and Asian Turnovers, make their rounds at the reception. Then graciously accept compliments near a buffet table full of “Chicken” Nuggets With Mango Chutney, Bruschetta, Shiitake Mushroom Pâté, Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade With Croûtes, barbecue “riblets” (that you can purchase at the grocery store), “meatballs” with Sweet-and-Sour Sauce, and caponata.

Buffet Table

Outdoor Garden Wedding

If your nuptial forecast is calling for a hitch-up out-of-doors, then arrange some out-of-this-world vegan goodies, such as our Fresh Fruit Platter, Gazpacho, Sandwich Basket, Hot Black-Bean Dip, Spicy “Sausage” Dip, and Hot Artichoke Dip, on three white-linen-dressed round tables:

Table 1

Table 2

Table 3

Choose the items that are most appropriate for your event.

Brunch

We’ve got a hunch that no post-wedding-day brunch should be without our Apple Crisp, Tofu Scramble, “Sausage”-and-Bean Burritos, “Bacon,” Potato, and Green Onion Frittata, Tomato-Pesto Platter, and Fresh Fruit Platter. Serve these dishes with assorted sweet breads, muffins, bagels, and jams and tofu cream cheese, hummus, and vegan margarine.

None of these ideas quite matches your taste or what you have in mind? Browse through hundreds of PETA recipes to find the perfect fit!

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 Handsome Suits for the Hubby-to-Be

 Vegan Wedding Food

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